May 3, 2006 The Video Camera Revised By WALTER S. MOSSBERG and KATHERINE BOEHRET
When someone whips out a video camera at a school play or family reunion, two thoughts probably run through your head. One: I really should get a video camera for moments just like this. Two: Who am I kidding? I have no clue how to use a video camera or what to do with the digital video files. For all their popularity, video cameras are a pain to use, especially on the spur of the moment. Most require a supply of tapes, and the discipline to have expensive, charged batteries at the ready. For casual users, video cameras are also intimidating, filled with buttons and controls whose purpose isn't always obvious. Not only that, but it's a challenge figuring out how to transfer your videos to a computer, for editing and sharing with others. And the price tags on most camcorders, ranging from hundreds to thousands of dollars, don't help. But what if somebody invented a dead-simple, point-and-shoot video camera -- the video equivalent of a point-and-shoot digital still camera? What if it had only a few simple buttons; didn't require tapes; used standard AA batteries; and cost under $150? And what if it had the built-in ability to easily transfer your videos to a computer, and an easy way to convert them into a DVD? Well, a small company has invented just such a video camera, and we've been testing it. It's a radical new design, unlike any other video camera we've tested, and has the potential to expand the video-camera market to people who, until now, have been reluctant to use one, or to use one very often. Not only that, but this simple, low-priced new design is due to spread by the end of this year, because it has been licensed to several big-name camera makers, who plan their own versions. Over the past few weeks, we've enjoyed trying out the new $130 Pure Digital Point & Shoot Video Camcorder by Pure Digital Technologies Inc. This device, which came out Monday and is being sold at Target stores, aims to be stunningly simple to use and works with a built-in software program that makes it easy for you to email condensed footage or save videos to your computer. ... http://ptech.wsj.com/archive/solution-20060503.html Reply with a "Thank you" if you liked this post. _____________________________ MEDIANEWS mailing list medianews@twiar.org To unsubscribe send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
